Water circulation thermostat



Nov. 26, 1940. M. GGLDSCHMIDT WATER CIRCULATION THERMOSTAT Filed June 22, 1957 9 Era.

Patented Nov. 26, 1940 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE Application June 22, 1937, Serial No. 149,645 In Germany August 5, 1936 2 Claims.

The invention relates to a device, especially for the control of the circulation of the cooling water in the internal combustion engines of automobiles.

Devices are already known which consist substantially of a thermostatic element which can expand or contract under the influence of its content, a liquid with a low boiling point, and thus actuate a control member, a disc valve or a throttle valve, to open or close the pathway of the cooling means in one or two directions. The aforesaid control members have the disadvantage that sometimes they cannot resist in the way that is necessary the pressure of the cooling means produced by the pump, resulting in unreliable work or damage.

The object of the present invention is to overcome these disadvantages by an arched guiding of the control member from one seat position to the other seat position, which is in the same plane.

The drawing illustrates one form of the invention wherein:

Figure 1 shows the structure according to a longitudinal section on line II of Fig. 3;

Fig. 2 shows it according to a longitudinal section on the line 22 of Fig. 3, and

Fig. 3 is a plan view of the structure with upper parts removed.

The control member is built into a housing, the upper part I of which carries the connections 2 and 3 for a line to the radiator and for a bypass line to the cooling water pump. The lower part 5, connected liquid tight with the upper part I, by means of the cap screw 4, terminates in the connection 6 for the line to the cooling water chamber of the engine. The upper part I is constructed in such a way that on its lower surface, inside of the housing, it has a number of openings I, 8, and 9, of which the two latter belong to the line to the radiator, and the first to the by-pass to the pump. The lower surface of the upper part- I is covered with a plate III of similar form, and provides a seat for the control member II, also made in the form of a plate. In the control member II are two passages 20 and 2| which in the two end positions are brought into and out of coincidence with the openings 8 and 9, respectively, and when out of coinciding relation, opening 20 overlies opening I. In order that no power-consuming sliding friction may take place between the control member II and plate III, as in the case of an ordinary fiat slide valve, the member II is guided by levers or links I2 .(in the drawing there are. four) which arearticulated or pivoted to bearing supports I3 on the plate ID. The member II, therefore, travels through an arched pathway and is in contact with the plate I only in its two end positions.

The actuating device for the member II consists in a push rod I4, which is articulated to one end of a lever I5, the other end of which is mounted on an arch I6 that is rigidly connected 10 with the plate I0. Also, on the plate II], by means of the connecting piece II, is fastened with some lateral flexibility a thermostatic element I8, serving to actuate the lever I5 and member II. expansion or contraction of the element I8, is transmitted through the push rod I9 to the lever I5, which multiplies the extent of movement.

In the use of the invention the connections 6 may be made by means of a rubber hose with the water jacket of the engine, and the connections 2 and 3 in a similar manner with the line to the radiator and the by-pass to the pump. When the engine is cold, the device is in the position shown in the drawing, that is, the thermostatic element I8 remains in the contracted state and the member II, correspondingly takes a position with relation to the plate It] in which the passage I is open, so that when the engine begins to operate the cooling means flows from there through the by-pass 3 and, without flowing through the radiator, flows back through the cooling water pump directly to the engine, for the purpose of rapidly heating the cooling means to the temperature favorable to the continuous running of the engine. When that temperature has been attained, the thermostatic element I8, on account of the evaporation of the liquid enclosed in it, begins to expand, whereupon the push rod I9, the lever I5, and with it the member II, move to the right. This closes the passage way I to the by-pass line and opens the passages 8 and 9 to the radiator, so that the cooling means, partially at first and later completely, takes its way to the radiator, where it is subjected to a rapid cooling. With a corresponding fall in the temperature of the cooling means and by means of the contraction of the. thermostatic element I 8, the process described is gone through in the reverse order.

The levers I2, by which the member II is suspended, give the latter an arched movement, and consequently no sliding friction is produced, as in the case of a flat slide valve, which in view of the comparatively small amount of powerthat 5 The driving force, expressed in the 15 I can be developed by the thermostatic element [8 could make the action of the member H unreliable. By the precipitation of the dissolved solid components in the cooling means, which partially have the effect of forming scale, there would even be difi'ioulty in the movement of a slide valve moved in a straight line. From the theoretically mechanical point of view, the end positions of the member II are stable and the mean position unstable, as it cannot be moved from the end positions without overcoming a certain although not undesirably large counter force caused by the pressure of the cooling means.

What is claimed is:

A thermostatically controlled valve for controlling the flow of cooling means in an internal combustion engine, comprising a flat plate member having separated openings, a fiat plate valve adapted to be moved from one position to another over the member and being adapted in one position to open one opening in the member and to close the other opening and in the other position to open said other opening and close said one opening, and means including a thermostat for moving the valve in an arcuate path over the member so as to separate the member and valve during such movement from one position to the other and to bring them substantially into flat contact when each of such positions is reached.

2. A thermostatically controlled valve for controlling the flow of cooling means in an internal combustion engine, comprising a flat plate member having separated openings, a fiat plate valve adapted to be moved from one position to an other over the member and being adapted in one position to open one opening in the member and to close the other opening and in the other position to open said other opening and close said one opening, means for moving the valve over the member from one position to the other while maintaining the valve parallel to the plate and for bringing the valve and plate into substantially fiat contact when each position is reached, and a thermostat for controlling said means so as to efiect said valve movement.

MAX GOLDSCHMIDT. 

